The following is a collection of short interviews of teachers at Seattle Academy. All were asked the same three questions “Where did you go to college?” “Why did you choose that school?” and “In hindsight, were you happy with your choice?”

Seattle Academy’s Community Service Organization meets every Tuesday to discuss what they can do for the community. Kids have ideas of their own, and the leaders, Rick DuPree and Mia Mlekarov, suggest events and programs for those who want to help but do not know how.

Most months, two event leaders take charge of an event that they organize for some time during the month. It is very easy to sign up for the events, and most of the meetings are not mandatory. This month, Rick led an event on Saturday, September 27. The maximum amount of service hours available for the event was 5 hours.

The event was a walk to raise money for cancer research at Seattle Children’s Hospital’s Adolescent and Young Adult Program. It was in memory of Juleesa Johnson, who was diagnosed with cancer and stayed at Seattle Children’s Hospital when she was battling the disease.

This was was the second annual walk for Juleesa Johnson, and was held at a beautiful park in Renton. It was organized by family, friends, and supporters that operate as a guild called Juleesa’s Smiles. Chance Johnson ‘16, Hannah Fleischmann ‘16, Haley Pirio ‘16, Kristina Todorov ‘16, Charlotte Zinda ‘18, Kate Sieler ‘18, and I volunteered at the event. Next time, we expect more SAAS students!

Tasks ranged from making signs to arranging tables to taking down tents, and we even got to participate in the walk. Everyone was incredibly nice and we all ended up enjoying the time we spent there.

The Juleesa Smiles! organization has a Facebook page where they share more information about the cause and how to donate. On the Facebook page, there is also a link to a video of the event (which I’m in!) that has clips of the walk and speeches given at the event.